Waitrose is officially opening its brand-new 15,000 sq ft supermarket on The Square in Hale Barns today, bringing its quality food, expert service, and community involvement to thousands more customers in Greater Manchester.
This highly-anticipated opening marks the next phase of Waitrose’s £1 billion nationwide investment plan, to deliver the very best experience for customers across its shops, online offering and partner sites.
The team at Waitrose Hale Barns brings together three experienced Partners who transferred over to the branch and 73 new recruits joining the John Lewis Partnership.
Located in the heart of the village, the new branch is designed as a complete destination for food lovers with more than 15,000 products on offer. Central to the offering is Waitrose’s approach to quality, food integrity and animal welfare. Key features include dedicated meat, fish and sushi counters, dry-aged beef cabinet, hand-cut and speciality cheeses, and a fruit and veg section championing organic, Fairtrade, and regeneratively-farmed produce.
Customers can explore the fully stocked, fresh-in-store bakery and patisserie and curated ranges including Waitrose No. 1, Essential Waitrose, and Waitrose Duchy Organic, alongside an expansive selection of award-winning wines – including a selection of Fine & Rare bottles – and low-and-no alcohol options.
Customer convenience is central to the store, offering Click & Collect services for John Lewis, Waitrose Entertaining and Waitrose Cellar, and rapid home delivery via Deliveroo and UberEats.
My Waitrose members can enjoy a host of benefits including personalised offers, free hot drinks and products and 20% off selected fish counter products every Friday.
The store features Electronic Shelf Labels, freeing up Partners from manual updates and allowing them to dedicate even more time to delivering the outstanding customer service Waitrose is known for. Partners are also equipped with a first-of-its-kind AI app, providing instant advice on product availability, wine pairings, and cooking and recipe recommendations.
As part of its commitment to the area, Waitrose Hale Barns will donate £12,000 annually to local charities and community groups through its Community Matters initiative.
Freddie Sackey-Addo, Waitrose regional manager, said: “After months of hard work behind the scenes, seeing the first shoppers walk through the doors this morning was a huge moment for all of us.
“This destination store has been designed around a genuine passion for food – from our Partners working on the counters and bakery to the curated wine selection and fresh fruit, vegetables and more. We hope our customers treat this as their neighbourhood shop, whether they’re grabbing a quick lunch, looking for advice on what to have for dinner, or discovering something new during their regular weekly shop. Hale Barns is a great location and we can’t wait to meet all our new customers.”
Joining the ribbon-cutting ceremony was Connor Rand, MP for Altrincham and Sale West, who said: “It’s wonderful to see Waitrose investing in this new store in the heart of Hale Barns. It’s a clear demonstration of what a vibrant and welcoming community we have to attract such a big national brand to our high street.
“I know that local residents in Hale are very much looking forward to the opening and I’m sure Waitrose will become a valued part of our community.”
To celebrate the opening, the very first customer through the doors at 8am received a bouquet of flowers. Shoppers were also treated to welcome drinks, food tastings, and free commemorative tote bags.
